News Detail

ACI and New Horizons

7/5/2023

The first part of this July memo is inspired by the end of the spring semester of the 2023 academic year. The graduation ceremonies are now behind us, graduates are starting their employment (or taking a well-deserved break), and I am asking myself if this was just another school year. It was not. Certainly, it was much different (and better) than the previous 3 years, when COVID-19 was rampant and omnipresent. However, the combination of several experiences, including the pandemic and other earthshaking events (some natural and some manmade) appears to have left the current generation of students insecure and fragile. And for many of them, their mental states border on depression and fear of the future.

In my 35 years as a faculty member, I have never witnessed a similar struggle that, for some students, develops into an inability to cope. Clearly, we cannot change the boundary conditions, but do we in the world of education bear some responsibilities and/or did we inadvertently aggravate the status quo? It is an open question I cannot answer; however, I believe that our obsession with creating leaders (in its meaning of exercising control and authority, rather than consensus builders) out of every student in our classes may not be of help. One university, for example, has for several years advertised the tagline of “prepare to dominate.” I am certain it was intended for all good reasons (such as recruiting); however, the selection of the verb (to dominate, from Latin “dominus = master, lord”) is inappropriate. That is, we are not in the business of educating individuals who aspire to be masters of others. I argue that we should strive to make everyone knowledgeable and ethical. With knowledge and ethics, one can make informed, wise, and fair decisions and, just as important, reinforce one’s self-esteem and self-awareness.

And this brings me to ACI’s vision: “ACI envisions a future where everyone has the knowledge needed to use concrete effectively to meet the demands of a changing world.” It is truly a well-thought and inspiring statement, obviously focusing not only on a material system and the construction industry but recognizing the cardinal value of knowledge, urging us to apply this knowledge in the context of a world that is changing. And these changes are unprecedented in terms of speed and scale.

The way we approach, distribute, and acquire knowledge is also dramatically changing (with significant implications on ethics). What we can do today in a split second and from the palm of our hand is unprecedented. Given the rapid advances in artificial intelligence (AI), it is not only advisable, but critical for ACI to gain a deeper understanding of these systems and their implications for ACI operations, document development, and the concrete industry in general. Thus, I have formed a Board Task Group on AI with the mission of examining the current and short-term environment regarding AI and reporting to the Board of Direction on its implications for ACI staff operations, committee activities, and uses within the concrete industry. Kimberly Kayler, President of AOE, an ACI subsidiary, will chair and convene this Task Group.

If AI opens new horizons with challenges and opportunities in the virtual world, we will have a similar revolution in the physical world with the inception of NEOM, which is home to the most complex and advanced construction project on the planet. NEOM involves the development of four pioneering regions which will drive sustainable growth in a challenging, undeveloped part of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Concrete will be the primary material system for its 170-km linear city known as THE LINE (www.neom.com/en-us/regions/theline), the biggest the world has ever seen. And because ACI is the world’s primary source of concrete knowledge and the world’s largest credentialing agency for concrete construction personnel, it seems only logical that we should collaborate effectively and efficiently for the success of the project and, as importantly, for the advancement of concrete knowledge in the context of sustainability. To this end, ACI leadership has had meetings with THE LINE’s project leadership to review the potential of collaboration and possible activities. We hope that these efforts materialize in an agreement during the next few months. If NEOM “…is at the forefront of delivering new and imaginative solutions to address these issues (i.e., livability and environmental crises facing our world’s cities)…” we at ACI are part of the solutions.

Antonio Nanni

ACI President